“God’s thoughts about us are as complex as we are. He doesn’t oversimplify us.”

A thought by Steven Furtick, (2016-03-01) from his book, (UN)Qualified: How God Uses Broken People to Do Big Things (p. 42). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title of the book to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

David, the inspired writer of Psalm 139: 17 -18 (NLT) says, “How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!”

Steven says, “God’s thoughts about us are as complex as we are. He doesn’t oversimplify us. He doesn’t lump us into categories, label us with scientific-sounding names, and alphabetize us on shelves.”

But we do that don’t we? Steven says, “We look at ourselves in the metaphorical mirror, sigh in disgust, and pronounce things like this: I am a failure. I am an alcoholic. I am dumb. I am hopeless. Really? With one line, with one word, we sum up our entire identity, existence, and potential? With such flippancy we dismiss our calling and stamp ourselves unqualified?”

He goes on, “That’s ridiculous. No one is that simple. We are living, moving, changing, growing beings. There are more dimensions to our existence than the most complicated theories of wormholes and alternate universes could ever postulate. God himself refuses to reduce us to a single flat image. He doesn’t merge all our layers and levels into a two-dimensional image. He doesn’t sum us up in a word. So why do we?”

He then finishes this section by saying, “We need to give our complexity some credit. We have to embrace the fact that our identities are beautiful, delicate, and complicated things. They are works of art, and God has a lot invested in them. Are they a little worse for the wear? Probably. Could they use some restoration? Of course. But God is the restorer, and he is going to take his time to do the job right.”

So will you allow Him to continue to restore the work that He started when He created you?

Comments

“We believe it’s important to derive value from everything in our lives.”

A thought by Jon Tyson from his book, The Burden Is Light: Liberating Your Life from the Tyranny of Performance and Success (p. 118). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) But is that all that is important? Jon says, “We want to realize an immediate return from whatever we invest in. I am prone to this way of thinking in so many areas of my life. ‘I paid a lot for that meal, yet the portions were not that big.’ ‘I invested two hours in that movie, and it was just okay.’ ‘I went to church, but the sermon wasn’t that profound.’ We believe it’s important to derive value from everything in our lives. But beauty doesn’t fit within that framework. When Mary anointed Jesus with oil, there was an immediate outcry against her extravagant generosity. ‘It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.’ (Mark 14:5) One gospel depicts the disciples crying, ‘Why this waste?...

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book, Winning the War on Worry (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...

“Hurry and love are incompatible.”

A thought by John Mark Comer from his book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (p. 23). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Wow, pretty strong thought isn’t it? John says, “All my worst moments as a father, a husband, and a pastor, even as a human being, are when I’m in a hurry—late for an appointment, behind on my unrealistic to-do list, trying to cram too much into my day. I ooze anger, tension, a critical nagging—the antitheses of love. If you don’t believe me, next time you’re trying to get your type B wife and three young, easily distracted children out of the house and you’re running late (a subject on which I have a wealth of experience), just pay attention to how you relate to them. Does it look and feel like love? Or is it far more in the vein of agitation, anger, a biting comment, a rough glare? Hurry and love are oil and water: they simply do not mix.” He goes on, “Hence, in the apostle P...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog